NAASR Virtual Gala Honors Vartan Gregorian

“Vartan redefined the meaning of extraordinary,” he stated, and like a sports hero who redefines the game once in a generation, Gregorian redefined what it means to be a humanist, humanitarian, teacher, and leader. Afeyan also shared one of Gregorian’s favorite quotes, from Bertolt Brecht: “Cursed is the land that needs heroes.” Certainly, this quote unfortunately applies to Armenia and the Armenians now and through most of history.

Chekijian spoke about Avedisian, a classically trained symphony clarinetist, who made his fortune in investments and gives back to the Armenian community through his service on the boards of NAASR, the American University of Armenia, and the Armenian Missionary Association of America. Chekijian shared his own  long history with NAASR starting when he first arrived in the United States from Jerusalem in the 1950s and attended the victory banquet celebrating the establishment of the Armenian Studies chair at Harvard.

As Chekijian described it, Avedisian pushed him and the rest of the board to be more ambitious with the plans for NAASR’s new center. Avedisian had a vision for a world-class institution as the headquarters of NAASR and he has a similar vision for Armenia — to invest in the education of the next generation. For this reason, he has founded a K-12 school named for his parents in the Malatia-Sebastia district of Yerevan, as well becoming a major donor to the American University of Armenia where one of the main buildings is named for his late brother.

A slideshow of Avedisian’s life was accompanied by a recording of him performing clarinet in a classical piece composed by Rouben Gregorian for clarinet and string orchestra. The affable Avedisian then appeared on the screen, sitting in a casual pose next to an image of Vartan Gregorian inside the new NAASR building. He spoke warmly from the heart and his enthusiasm for Armenian causes and NAASR was evident.

Avedisian mentioned that he wanted NAASR to be a home and center for all Armenians, to study, do research, hold meetings, and even relax in the presence of the accumulated knowledge of history. He encouraged an open-door policy to welcome the Armenian community and for the center to truly be a part of the community.

Avedisian also discussed his memories of the late Vartan Gregorian and offered some insights into what made the great man “tick.” One point he emphasized was Gregorian’s motto of “my word is my bond,” pointing out that Gregorian turned down the presidency of Columbia University because he had promised Brown University — in word, not in a contract — that he would stay at the helm there until he raised $1 billion for the school’s endowment.